Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC Increases Stock Position in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS)

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC raised its holdings in Novartis AG (NYSE:NVS) by 5.6% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,127 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 808 shares during the quarter. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC’s holdings in Novartis were worth $1,463,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in NVS. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD boosted its holdings in Novartis by 40.1% in the 1st quarter. Mondrian Investment Partners LTD now owns 2,065,739 shares of the company’s stock valued at $199,819,000 after purchasing an additional 590,830 shares in the last quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 99.0% during the 4th quarter. Morningstar Investment Services LLC now owns 746,836 shares of the company’s stock worth $74,661,000 after acquiring an additional 371,590 shares in the last quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 1,936.7% during the 4th quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 387,820 shares of the company’s stock worth $39,158,000 after acquiring an additional 368,778 shares in the last quarter. First Financial Bankshares Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Novartis during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,003,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Novartis by 6,599.3% during the 4th quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 149,395 shares of the company’s stock worth $15,084,000 after acquiring an additional 147,165 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.12% of the company’s stock.

Novartis Price Performance

Shares of Novartis stock traded down $1.09 during trading on Friday, hitting $106.13. 1,683,292 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,398,091. The company has a quick ratio of 0.71, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43. Novartis AG has a fifty-two week low of $92.19 and a fifty-two week high of $112.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $216.93 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.32, a P/E/G ratio of 1.65 and a beta of 0.57. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $105.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $102.20.

Novartis (NYSE:NVS) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 18th. The company reported $1.97 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.87 by $0.10. The firm had revenue of $12.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $12.24 billion. Novartis had a return on equity of 34.63% and a net margin of 33.76%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 EPS. On average, equities analysts expect that Novartis AG will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on NVS shares. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Novartis in a research note on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on Novartis from $121.00 to $122.50 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Barclays raised Novartis to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Monday, June 24th. BMO Capital Markets boosted their price target on Novartis from $114.00 to $116.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on Novartis in a research report on Thursday, May 30th. They set a “buy” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $118.13.

About Novartis

Novartis AG engages in the research, development, manufacture, and marketing of healthcare products in Switzerland and internationally. The company offers prescription medicines for patients and physicians. It focuses on therapeutic areas, such as cardiovascular, renal and metabolic, immunology, neuroscience, and oncology, as well as ophthalmology and hematology.